The legislation provides for prison terms of up to three years and fines of as much as ₹1 crore for those operating or facilitating such services.
New Delhi: President Droupadi Murmu on Friday signed into law the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025, a day after it cleared Parliament, introducing sweeping restrictions on money-based online gaming platforms in India.
The legislation provides for prison terms of up to three years and fines of as much as ₹1 crore for those operating or facilitating such services. It also penalises advertising and promotion of these platforms with up to two years in jail and fines of ₹50 lakh.
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After Parliament gave its nod to the Bill, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said it would save society from the harmful effects of online money games. The Rajya Sabha passed the bill in just 26 minutes on Thursday, a day after the Lok Sabha cleared it within seven minutes.
Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw argued that the move was essential to protect families from financial ruin caused by online gambling.
“From time to time, society grapples with social evils. In these circumstances, it is the duty of the government and the Parliament to probe and make laws to control them,” Vaishnaw said in the Rajya Sabha, adding that people were losing their “life’s savings” in such platforms.
Vaishnaw claimed that around 45 crore people have been affected, and around Rs 20,000 crore have been lost because of online money game.
Several platforms, such as WinZO and Nazara Technologies-backed Moonshine Technologies (PokerBaazi), suspended their real-money online gaming operations after the bill was passed by the Parliament.
With Presidential assent, the law now comes into effect. IANS
Published: 22 Aug 2025, 07:25 pm IST
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